Appellate Court Upholds Decision For Water Companies On Corrosion Claims

On May 3, 2018, the Fourth Appellate District upheld the trial court’s judgment in the Williams v. Moulton Niguel Water Dist., 22 Cal. App. 5th 1198 (2018) pipe corrosion cases. Matt McMillan represented Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (“MWD”) in a bifurcated bench trial and prevailed on MWD’s defense that the plaintiffs’ claims were preempted by federal and state laws and otherwise insufficient on the merits. Plaintiffs were comprised of several different coordinated lawsuits wherein plaintiffs’ actions were comprised of multiple coordinated lawsuits alleging that the water being provided by MWD to their homes caused corrosion in their copper piping. In particular, the Appellate Court found preemption of the plaintiffs’ corrosion claims because plaintiffs were unable to demonstrate any violation of the Lead and Copper Rule, 40 C.F.R. Par 141, 42 U.S.C. Section 300 and Health and Safety Code Section 11627, et seq. The Appellate Court decision was a significant victory for water providers like MWD.